Merle and Patricia Butler of Rose Bud, Illinois won $218 million in the Mega Millions Jackpot. To get their money though, they had to go public – it is a long-standing policy in Illinois where the identities of the winners have to be public. The Illinois state lottery wants to assure people that there really is a winner of this money and that the games are not rigged. There are some exceptions where winners have been allowed to maintain their privacy.

Merle and Patricia would have preferred to exercise their first amendment and keep their winnings private.

Special thanks to David S. Luber (Attorney at law, Florida Probate Attorney Wills and Estates Law Firm) for bringing this article to my attention.